The All-Party Parliamentary Human Rights Group (PHRG) held this meeting, chaired by Ann Clwyd MP, to discuss violations of freedom of expression in Malaysia, including under the Sedition Act.
Zunar has previously been targeted by the Government for his work, and is now facing up to 43 years in prison in connection with 9 charges under the Sedition Act for tweets questioning the independence of the Malaysian judiciary following Anwar Ibrahim’s trial.
The main points raised by Zunar:
- 7 of Zunar’s cartoons have been banned because their content was deemed ‘detrimental to public order’.
- He has had his office raided more than 3 times and over 1000 of his books confiscated.
- In 2012, the Government said it would repeal the Sedition Act, but has only revised it, with the revised version not yet having come into force.
- There has been a spike in use of the Sedition Act in recent years, to crack down on dissent. There has been over 400 cases in the last three years, mostly involving human rights defenders, journalists and activists. A number of Malaysian MPs have also been charged under the Act.
- The Minor Offences Act is also being used to restrict freedom of expression.
- Many feel that the current crackdown is systematic, used to undermine human rights and the opposition movement in the country.
- Given the UK’s special relationship with Malaysia, more should be done to by the UK Government to raise human rights concerns with their Malaysian counterparts.
- The Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, is due to visit the UK in early November, which would provide an important opportunity to raise concerns.
Since this meeting, Ann Clwyd MP tabled an Early Day Motion on the topic, which can be viewed here. It was co-sponsored by fellow PHRG Officers Dominic Grieve QC MP and Mark Durkan MP.
Zunar also presented PHRG Chair, Ann Clwyd MP, with a cartoon featuring the UK Prime Minister David Cameron, asking him to raise freedom of expression concerns with the Malaysian Prime Minister Nabil Razak.
